


CAZZAM!

by RobynZ



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, DCeased (DC Comics), Shazam! | Captain Marvel (Comics)
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-23
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-15 15:54:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28941063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RobynZ/pseuds/RobynZ
Summary: Cassandra Cain is pure of heart. In this AU, we see a reality in which this earned her the power of Shazam shortly after she ran away from her father.
Comments: 13
Kudos: 25





	1. The First Word

**Author's Note:**

> This story will be exactly 9 chapters long. While the focus will remain on Cass and her story as Cazzam, the BatFamily, Justice League, and Marvel Family will all feature prominently, and they will be added to the character tags once they appear.

She still felt the blood on her hands. 

It had been washed away days ago in the rain after she’d failed to find shelter, but the sticky, crimson substance still clung to her. She was confused, in pain, and knew nothing about the world she now inhabited. But she did know that her hands would never be clean again. 

She’d known what it was to hurt all her life. She’d been hit for the first time when she was 3 and shot for the first time when she was four. For every moment of her life she cherished, there were ten times as many she wanted to forget. She didn’t know why her father hurt her. He loved her. It had always been confusing. 

But now, as much as she missed him, she knew she could never go back. What he’d had her do, what he’d always trained her to do, had shaken her to her very core. A week since she’d ended a man’s life, she still couldn’t sleep. Every time she closed her eyes, the moments leading up to the kill and everything that followed played out in her mind.

The unnamed eight year-old girl was all alone in a city she didn’t know the name of in a country she didn’t know the name of. All she knew was that she had to get as far away from her father as possible. She could never do what she’d done again. 

Surviving on her own was strange. Her father had always provided her with everything from food and clothes to knives and guns. Now, however, she found herself taking food from places where it seemed to be in abundance. What was one lost muffin or hamburger? She’d also quickly learned that when sitting by the street, strangers would sometimes give her food, as well as tiny metal coins, which she had no idea what to do with. 

While food wasn’t an issue, she still wore the same pink dress she’d ran away in, and had done nothing to maintain her hygiene. She was acutely aware of how badly she smelled, but she didn’t think fixing that was a priority. Her life was running and resting and eating. There was no time for anything else. 

She didn’t know when she would stop running, but she felt that she’d know when she was safe. Perhaps there was somewhere in the world where no one would ever be able to find her. They’d never be able to hurt her, and she’d never be able to hurt them. Yes, she hoped deeply that a place like this existed. And perhaps one day, if she continued to only stop to rest and eat, she would find it.   
The rain which had begun the previous night was yet to cease and the sky was a dark grey. Neither of these factors affected the girl at all. She’d woken up in the box a man had given her two nights ago in exchange for the metal coins she’d collected, stolen a banana and a chocolate milkshake, and returned to her journey. 

Out of the uncountable new things the girl had discovered since she’d ran away, chocolate milkshakes were most certainly one of her favorites. Bananas meanwhile were something she’d eaten many times in the past. Her father had included them in her meals all the time. She still enjoyed them, but having now learned about so many more types of food, she wondered why her father had always given her the same things to eat. Had it all been to prepare her for that moment? Did the foods he’d given her make her a better killer? Were they bad? Were they bad like she was? 

“Excuse me, miss. May I have a moment of your time?” 

An old, Caucasian man in a suit had stepped in front of the girl. He had curly gray hair and held an umbrella over his head. Despite him being a complete stranger and her inability to understand a word the man had just said, she wasn’t afraid of him. His smile was gentle and his presence was oddly calming. The girl had still been drinking her milkshake anyway, so she decided to give the seemingly friendly man her time until she was finished with it. 

“I couldn’t help but notice you out here without an umbrella, in a dress which looks like it hasn’t been washed in ages. Do you need some help?”

The girl sipped her milkshake. She could see that he was worried about her, and she appreciated it, but there was nothing he could do. He couldn’t protect her from her father and he couldn’t change who she was. 

She shook her head. 

The man laughed, reaching his arm out and positioning his umbrella over the girl. “Now, miss, I don’t have your special gifts, but I can tell that that’s not true.” 

Had the girl been able to understand what he’d just said, she may have become defensive and afraid. But all she could see was that there was something unusual about the man that she hadn’t noticed at first. She opened her mouth, but all that came out were weak squeaks and a cough. 

“It’s okay,” the man said. “I know. I know that there are billions of beautiful thoughts in your mind just aching to come out. And I can help, if you just come with me.” 

The man positioned himself next to her and reached out his arm toward a nearby staircase which she could swear hadn’t been present a moment ago. 

As the girl slurped up the last of her milkshake, she thought about running away from the old man as quickly as possible. Going with him would only waste her time and put him in danger. And yet, for reasons she couldn’t explain, she wanted to go with him. There was a warmth to him that hadn’t been present in anyone else she’d ever encountered. 

The girl raised up her cup and shook it, pouting at the man, getting him to chuckle. 

“Yes, if you come with me, I’ll get you another milkshake.” She rubbed her belly. “And any other food you want.” 

Little did the old man know that the young girl had a bottomless stomach. Had she been able to fully understand what he’d said, he’d have been stuck buying her an endless amount of food.   
Still hungry and the strange presence around the man making her want to trust him, the girl began walking toward the subway, the old man keeping in step with her to hold the umbrella over her head.   
They went down the steps, and the girl could tell after a few moments that there was something unusual about this staircase. As they descended into the underground, the white plaster walls became brown stone, and the smells of the city were replaced with the scent of burning sage. 

“Don’t be scared,” the man said. “I’m taking you to meet a friend of mine.” 

The more steps they went down, the more otherworldly the surroundings became. While the girl didn’t find comfort in the peculiar markings and psychedelic lighting, she thought that this may have been what she was looking for. It seemed so separate from the rest of the world. So isolated. Maybe the kind old man would let her stay here forever. 

The two arrived at the bottom of the steps, where a bright red train car was waiting for them. They stepped onto it and, almost immediately, it sped forward, the unexpected movement knocking the girl to the floor. 

“Apologies,” the man said as he reached a hand out to her. “I should have warned you about that.” 

The girl wasn’t in pain, a bump on the bottom was nothing compared to what she’d felt before, but she was still annoyed, tiny irritated noises making their way out of her mouth. 

When the train car stopped, the two stepped off and entered a dark, subterranean cavern. On the walls were words the girl couldn’t read, as well as seven creepy faces. The red one resembled her father when he was upset with her. 

The cavern was lit up by torches and, at the end of it, sat an old man with a long white beard in an equally white chair, a globe and a massive red book at his sides, and a massive granite block hovering above his head by a thread. 

“Welcome, young one!” he called out. 

The girl didn’t detect the same warmth from this new old man as she did from the one at her side, but the friendly man smiled at her and walked forward, encouraging her to do the same.   
“It is an honor to meet you. I know you possess no name, but you may know me as SHAZAM!” 

The man dramatically shot his arms up into the air as he shouted his name, but the girl just looked confused. 

“Uh, boss, she doesn’t know what you’re saying,” the friendly man said, the girl detecting fear and embarrassment. 

“Oh, yes, yes,” Shazam scratched his head. “Traditionally, the explanation of what fate has in store comes before the bestowing of powers, but I suppose we have no choice but to mix things up.” 

The friendly man got down on his knees and softly and visibly put his hands on the girl’s shoulders. 

“Miss, I need you to name the name my master just uttered. Shazam! Sha-Zam!” 

The girl tilted her head to the side, unsure of what she was being asked. 

“Shazam, girl! Shazam!” Shazam howled.

“Be patient with her, Master.” 

“Just get her to speak my name, Tawny!” 

The girl backed away from Tawny, frightened more than anything by Shazam. Much like the image on the wall, his rage reminded her of her father. 

“Please, just do as I do,” Tawny said, gesturing to himself. “Sha-Zam. Sha-Zam. Sha-Zam.” 

Standing in place, the girl slightly raised her fists. “Shhhhhhhhhh--” her voice trailed off into squeaks. 

“It’s okay, take your time.” 

“It’s not okay! The world is in grave peril as we speak!” 

The girl raised her hands further up as she continued to try and speak Shazam’s name. 

“You’re scaring her!” 

“She’s supposed to be the world’s greatest champion! She shouldn’t be scared of anything!” 

Tawny turned to his master with a sneer, before looking back kindly at the girl, who looked like she was set to start running at any second. 

“Take it sound by sound. Shhhhhhhhhhh.” 

The girl clenched her face and chest and did her best to mimic Tawny. “Shhhhhhhh.” 

“Uhhhhhhhhhh.” 

“Uhhhhhhhhh.” 

“Zaaaaaaaaa.”

“Zaaaaaaaa.” 

“Mmmmmmmm.” 

“Mmmmmmm.” 

The girl’s mimicry was far from perfect, her voice still rough and squeaky, but while the master rolled his eyes, Tawny could see that she was trying her hardest. 

“Now, try putting it together. Shuuuuuuuuuuuh.” 

“Shuuuuuuuuu.” 

“Zaaaaaaaaam.” 

“Zaaaaaaaaam.” 

“All together now!” 

“Just spit it out already!” Shazam screamed. 

“Stop shouting at her!” Tawny screamed back. 

The girl desperately wanted to succeed in the task she’d been given. She wanted to speak this word. To see what these strange people were after. But her mind couldn’t put the two separate syllables together. She was afraid and disappointed in herself. She was distracted. But not so distracted that she didn’t notice as the thread holding the block above Shazam’s head began to stretch out. 

“I’m starting to think that maybe I made the wrong choice. Perhaps I should have chosen a successor more--- the devil?!” 

Shazam was filled with confusion as the girl charged toward him at near super-human speed. Time slowed down for her, but she could tell that even with as quick as she was on her feet, she wasn’t going to reach him in time. He was going to die. Another man was going to die because of her. She had to warn him. 

“SHAZAM!” 

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning shot down from the sky, and while her intention had only been to alert Shazam, she was now more than fast enough to tackle him out of the way before the granite block fell and crushed him. 

Along with superior speed, the girl, now a woman, had been granted all sorts of new abilities, along with a tight, all-black costume with a lightning bolt on her chest. For anyone else, all of these new powers would have been blessings. However, for her, one of them was a curse. 

“Brilliant!” Shazam cheered. “You have completed the transformation and, somehow, prevented the death I foresaw for myself so long ago. I apologize for ever doubting--” 

“Ahhhhhhhhhhh!” 

The woman in black fell to her knees and pressed her hands against her head. Yes, she had been given the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, the power of Zeus, the courage of Achilles, and the speed of Mercury, but she’d also been given the wisdom of Solomon. And with that wisdom, came words. Every word that humans had ever come up with. 

“What’s wrong with her?’ Shazam asked. 

“I’m...I’m not sure,” Tawny said. 

What happened to me? The woman thought. What happened to my body? Where did all of these words come from? 

She rolled over onto her side, panicking, the changes to her too massive to take in all at once. 

“Uh, Master, maybe giving the explanation would help?” Tawny suggested. 

Shazam nodded as he approached the woman. “Miss, for 3,000 years, I have used the wisdom, strength, speed, stamina, power, and courage of the gods to battle the forces of evil which every day threaten to extinguish man from the face of the Earth. And during that time, I have seen everything that has happened throughout the world. I know that you are the daughter of the assassin David Cain. I know how he abused you in his quest to make you the ultimate killer. And I know how he tricked you into taking a man’s life.” 

The woman could understand every word he was saying. As sick as she was by what her body and head were feeling, she was overjoyed at this revelation. Pushing through the pain, as she’d done so many times before, she took her hands off her head and stood up. 

“All my life, I have fought injustice and cruelty,” Shazam continued. “But I am old now - my time is almost up. By speaking my name, you have taken on my powers and become the mightiest woman in the world - Captain Marvel!” 

As the woman breathed heavily, she took in what Shazam had just told her, as well as each individual change that had happened to her. She could feel the powers he’d described coursing through her. And even more than the words, they terrified her.

“Bbbbbbu--” 

The woman tried to speak, but even the knowledge of Solomon couldn’t fix what her monster of a father had done to her. 

“Me...not...goo…” She cast her head down for a moment before looking back up at the two old men and screaming, “Take away! I’m bad!” 

Tears streamed down the woman’s face as she hugged herself. “I’m bad. Will hurt. Will hurt everyone.” 

Without consulting his master, Tawny decided on a course of action. Kids always got a kick out of talking animals, and now that the woman had been exposed to the world of magic anyway, he saw no issue in ripping off his disguise and showing off his true, tiger form to try and make her feel better. 

Taken aback, the woman unconsciously moved away at super speed. 

“No need to be afraid! I’m just properly introducing myself. Name’s Talky Tawny, and I’m here to help you be the best champion of the Earth you can be!” 

“Miss, I know you harbor harsh feelings toward yourself,” Shazam said. “But I have chosen you above all others because of the purity of your heart. You are not responsible for what your father made you do. And although you were trained to do it all your life, you could see instantly that what you’d done was wrong. I admit, you are not what I envisioned, and I did indeed doubt you moments ago, but for that, I apologize. There is no one with a kinder and more gentle soul, and with a greater sense of justice. You are my successor. And the world needs you. Now.” 

The woman could understand what she was hearing, but she couldn’t believe it. Her? Pure of heart? Kind and gentle? Not a chance. She was a killer. She was bad. They must have gotten her mixed up with someone else. Like one of the costumed people she’d seen on TVs in display windows. Like Black Canary. Still, she couldn’t ignore what he’d said about the world being in danger. 

“World...danger?” 

Shazam nodded. “An evil man named Dr. Thaddeus Sivana has developed a weapon which, if used, could end all life on Earth. However, he only believes that it is capable of destroying cities and plans to use it in the next hour to destroy the city of Metropolis as a show of force, in his bid for world domination. Earth’s other protectors, the Justice League of America, know nothing of his plans. Only you can go to his secret island and stop him. Whether you believe in yourself or not right now is irrelevant. The world needs Captain Marvel!” 

This couldn’t have been right. He couldn’t truly be trusting someone like her to protect all of humanity. But if he just told her where the island was, then she could use her speed to go and alert the Justice League to what was happening. They would save the world, she could give these powers back, and she could return to her quest of finding a place where she could be all alo--

The girl’s thoughts were cut off as she gasped. Talky Tawny had wrapped his arms around her, his grip simultaneously tighter and more gentle than her father’s had ever been. 

“Wh...what are you…?” 

“It’s okay,” Tawny said softly. “We know what you’ve been through. And we promise you, none of it was your fault. You were abused by an evil man. But you don’t have to worry about him now. You can be you. The real you. A hero. And like I said before, I’ll always have your back. We’ll be pals.” 

A strange tiger man was talking to her and hugging her. He’d been so sweet to her, and now he was telling her how much he trusted her and wanted to be friends with her. Relaxed in his arms, she thought straight. Neither Shazam nor Tawny had been lying to her. And with the magic which she’d already been exposed to, a mistake didn’t seem possible. Could it be? Could she truly have been pure of heart? Good? 

“Tell me...where...evil.” 

Tawny let go of the woman and exchanged smiles with Shazam. Their champion was ready.


	2. The Golden Age

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Captain Marvel faces off against Dr. Sivana, the real world, and her greatest enemy.

Shazam and Talky Tawny had given the newly christened Captain Marvel the location of Dr. Sivana’s laboratory and, once she’d figured out how to, she’d begun flying toward it. 

  
The mad scientist had set up shop on Beredo Island, an otherwise uninhabited location in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. For eight months, he’d been working on a weapon that would allow him to annihilate cities. With something like that at his disposal, he thought that the governments of the world would have no choice but to submit to his rule. However, he had made his weapon far more powerful than he realized. The instant it was turned on, an explosion would be triggered, one which would end all life on Earth. 

  
Captain Marvel was the only one who could stop this from happening. And she was currently struggling not to vomit into the ocean. 

  
She had been trained to be the ultimate killer. She could coordinate her body in ways no other fighter could. She could be shot and not flinch. Her strength and speed had already been near-superhuman. But flying faster than the speed of sound? That was new to her. 

  
And while her body was still coming to terms with its new form and abilities, her mind was still focused on what the wizard and tiger had explained to her. Somehow, she was pure of heart. More pure of heart than anyone else had been in the last 3,000 years. It made no sense to her. She’d taken someone’s life. Watched him slowly die after digging her hands into his neck. And yet she was pure? For right now, she had no choice but to trust her new friends, but she remained doubtful. 

  
As the captain approached Beredo Island, its automatic defense system was triggered. Whether or not Sivana’s laser cannons would be able to harm her was a question that would never be answered, as before they even started firing, she’d landed on the beach. 

  
She proceeded to search the island and, in mere seconds, she found Sivana’s lab, which had two armed guards posted outside. Captain Marvel was wary about hurting anyone, but if she was going to capture Sivana, then she needed to figure out her own strength first. In her normal form, she knew that a weak punch was enough to knock most grown men out cold. So, the captain rushed up to them, and while they were gasping and raising their weapons, she lightly flicked their foreheads with her finger, launching them both into nearby trees. Filled with fear that she’d used too much strength, she checked on them both to make sure they were still alive. Sure enough, they were still breathing, allowing the captain to resume doing so as well. 

  
_Okay_ , she thought. _Find evil man. Flick._

  
Captain Marvel punched open the entrance to the lab, shattering the door into a million pieces, and raced inside. The lab was naturally booby-trapped, but all of Sivana’s defense measures were either too slow to keep up with the speed of Mercury, or simply ineffective against the world’s mightiest mortal. 

  
Before long, the captain was face to face with one of the world’s most genius and insidious minds at the heart of the laboratory. 

  
“What the devil?” Sivana shrieked in an almost cartoonishly high pitch. “Who are you?” 

  
The woman thought back to moments of Black Canary and Superman she’d seen on TV, stood up tall, and put her fists on her hips. If she was really meant to be a hero, then she figured she should look the part. 

  
“Captain...Marvel.” 

  
Dr. Sivana sneered, crossed his arms, and began pacing around the room. 

  
“I was unaware any of you superhero types had discovered what I was planning,” he said, rolling his hands around each other. “And if any of you were to catch on, I would have expected it to be The Batman.” Dr. Sivana grinned. “But it doesn't matter. Whoever you are, you are no match for my--” 

  
Before Dr. Sivanna could finish his sentence, Captain Marvel had flicked his forehead, sending him crashing into a computer and knocking him unconscious. 

  
“Talk too much.” 

  
Looking up at the enormous doomsday device Sivana had constructed, she found that in the back of her mind was the knowledge of how to dismantle it. There was a great deal of new information in her mind, like the history of the Earth and the truth behind the pigeon conspiracy, but for now, she focused on only the info she needed. 

  
In a matter of seconds, eight months of work was reduced to a pile of scrap. With no more difficulty than it had taken the young girl to end a man’s life, Captain Marvel had just saved the world. 

  
*  
“Well done, my champion!” Shazam shouted as Captain Marvel returned to the cave, having handed Sivana and his men over to the government as the wizard had instructed her. 

  
“You did great, kid!” Tawny followed, running up to her. 

  
Captain Marvel scratched the back of her head. She was proud of what she’d accomplished and ecstatic that she’d saved so many people, but the praise being thrown her way made her uncomfortable. 

  
“SHAZAM!” 

  
A bolt of lightning came down from the sky and struck the captain, turning her back into an eight year-old girl. She couldn’t let herself forget who she really was. What she really was. 

  
“There are still many battles ahead of you,” Shazam said. “Many evils for you to combat. But for the time being, Tawny shall help you in establishing a life separate from your duties as Captain Marvel.” 

  
The young girl turned to Tawny as a zipper appeared in his hand and, pulling it up his body, he transformed back into the gray-haired man she’d initially met. 

  
“Just call me Thomas T. Awny, Fawcett City public works administrator!” he cheered. “Fawcett is over in America, and I’ve got an apartment all set up for us there! No more sleeping on the street!” 

  
While the girl appreciated the idea of having a proper home again, she wasn’t sure it was right to agree to this. Especially with how much power she had now, she was worried about hurting Tawny. And she questioned if she deserved a roof over her head. 

  
With the smile Tawny was shooting her, however, she struggled to tell him “No”, and so she forced a smile onto her own face and smiled. 

  
“Very good,” Shazam said, stroking his beard. “Tawny will look after you, and notify you when the world needs Captain Marvel. As for myself, thanks to you, I have avoided the death I’d long expected. So, after three millennia of service, I believe I’ll be going on vacation. Provided you continue to do your job well, we will not need to meet again. Farewell, my champion!” 

  
The wizard clapped his fingers and, in an instant, Tawny and the girl were transported to a reasonably priced apartment in Fawcett City. It was roomy, there were comfortable chairs and couches all around them, and there was an excellent view of the city. It was the nicest place the young girl had ever been. 

  
“All...mine?” 

  
“Well, all ours,” Tawny laughed. “There’s a bedroom for each of us. Only one bathroom though. Fun little secret about being a magic talking tiger is you never have to go.” The girl cracked a small smile, prompting Tawny’s ears to wiggle. “I’m sure you must be tired from saving the world and, well, everything you’ve been through. Would you like to see your room?” 

  
The girl nodded, and Tawny led her down the hall. Opening the door, the girl found a space that didn’t resemble her old “room” at all. In place of the dull gray walls, these walls were a bright yellow, in place of a cot, there was a bed with a canopy, and there was actually room for her to move around. 

  
“I kept things pretty simple,” Tawny said. “Figured you could personalize it yourself.” 

  
The girl walked over to her new bed and flopped onto it. It was soft and wonderful and she didn’t want to move. 

  
“I’ll order you some pizza. You just relax for now.” 

  
Tawny closed the door and went off to call one of the million pizza places in Fawcett City, while the girl continued to enjoy her new bed. 

  
As the girl made herself comfortable, she thought about her strange new situation. First things first were the words. The troubling, annoying words. English had been the language Shazam and Tawny had been using, so she’d used it in turn, but she now knew how to speak in every human language there was. She thought that maybe there was a language more comfortable for her than English, but as she whispered in every single one, none of them felt right. 

  
It wasn’t until she got to ASL, a non-verbal language, that she found one which didn’t make her queasy. No words, just gestures. Just movement. Yes, she definitely hoped Tawny knew how to sign as well. 

  
Before returning to her thoughts, she signed some words with movements she enjoyed. “Fighting”. “Flying”. “Family.” 

  
Once she was done, she turned her mind to her new role as Captain Marvel and her new home with Tawny. She was certain that any number of heroes could have dealt with Sivana, but she believed that there were indeed threats only she could handle. And if that was true, then she couldn’t run away from this job, no matter how wrong she felt she was for it. 

  
And she liked Tawny well enough. He’d been nice to her in a way no one else ever had been. To keep him safe, she’d just have to make sure she never got too close to him and never turned into Captain Marvel in the apartment. She worried that she was still potentially capable of killing him in her normal form, but all she could do was hope that he was stronger than he seemed. 

  
Before too much longer, the girl fell asleep. It was still early in the day, but she’d been through a lot, and she’d never been given the chance to sleep somewhere so comfortable. Properly starting off her new life and devouring the pizza Tawny had ordered would have to wait. 

  
*  
During the girl’s first hour of consciousness the next day, she learned many new facts which the wisdom of Solomon hadn’t provided her. A soft bed made sleeping much more enjoyable, cold pizza was the greatest food on Earth, and a change of clean clothes made her feel like a new girl, Tawny having left a note to look in her closet for them. 

  
While they were eating their pizza together, Tawny having a single slice, while the girl ate the rest of the pie, the young Captain Marvel elected to talk about the discovery she’d made the previous night. 

  
“Do you speak with your hands?” the girl signed. 

  
Tawny cracked his neck. “It's been a while, but I know my way around ASL,” Tawny signed back. “Do you prefer communicating like this?” 

  
The girl nodded. “If that’s okay.” 

  
“Of course.” 

  
The two continued eating in silence until Tawny had finished both his slice and his coffee and got up. 

  
“Okay, I have to get to work because for some reason human society still requires people to work and make money to keep their homes, but I’ll be back in about nine hours,” Tawny signed. “Maybe then we can talk about what you want to do while you’re not busy being Captain Marvel. Enroll you in school, find some hobbies for you, whatever you want.” He tilted his head to the side and grinned. “Maybe even find you a proper name as opposed to just, “Captain Marvel”. 

  
Without thinking, the girl shook her head furiously. This wasn’t something she’d already given thought about, but she didn’t need to. School? That would just put other children in danger. Hobbies? Just a distraction from training. She needed to spend as much time as possible mastering her powers and figuring out how to integrate her fighting style with them. And a name? Completely unnecessary. If this was really her life now, then she only needed to be Captain Marvel.   


“I’ll train. And protect people. I don’t need another name.” 

  
Tawny frowned, scratching his nose. “Well, alright, whatever you want.” Tawny turned around to walk out of the apartment, but he quickly returned to facing the girl. “Oh, you should probably keep the news on the TV. There may be a crisis only Captain Marvel can solve.” 

  
The girl simply waved at Tawny as she stuffed more pizza in her mouth, while Tawny finally left. Captain Marvel’s mind was now focused entirely on cheese and sauce, while Tawny was left thinking about how he could connect with someone so disinterested in building a life. 

  
The hours passed, the girl practicing her martial arts with the news on in the background, until she overheard that there was a hostage situation over at The Daily Planet in Metropolis. The reporters and other employees inside were all being held at gunpoint, and the man in charge of the criminals, Vinny Blunt, was demanding the immediate release of all the members of his old gang, as well as a sum of ten million dollars. 

  
Captain Marvel knew that Metropolis was the home city of Superman, one of the world’s greatest heroes. But as the girl kept her eyes glued to the TV for minutes on end, Superman didn’t show up to save the day. She figured that he must have been busy saving people elsewhere. 

  
Still, if he wasn’t going to spring into action, then she had to. The girl charged toward the apartment’s window, opened it up, and jumped out, allowing herself to remain in freefall for several seconds before calling out, “SHAZAM!” 

  
Transforming into her superpowered adult form once again, the captain reached Metropolis in under a minute, setting her eyes on the globe-topped skyscraper. 

  
Although she was confident in the speed, given there were people trapped inside being held at gunpoint, Captain Marvel felt it best to use her x-ray vision to scope out the layout of the building and the positions of the criminals before busting in. 

  
There looked to be eleven gunmen, including a man in a black turtleneck and brown trench coat who, based on his body language compared to the others, the captain was able to deduce was the leader. 

  
Her first course of action would be to take the leader down and hand him over to the government-looking people outside the newspaper office, and then go back for the rest. She thought that so long as he wasn’t able to give orders, the rest wouldn’t hurt anyone. While several of the gunmen didn’t look like they had any issue with what they were doing, others seemed more afraid than anything else. 

  
Captain Marvel burst through one of the windows and, a split second later, she found herself to face to face with the leader, the long-haired man stepping back in shock and aiming his gun at her. 

  
“Wh...who are you? Batman and Superman have a daughter or something?” 

  
Captain Marvel closed the distance between them and readied her fingers to flick his forehead. Before she could, however, a gunshot rang out. But while as her normal self bullets no longer hurt, in this form, bullets couldn’t even penetrate her skin, instead just bouncing off of her. 

  
Glancing down at the bullet, she saw that it was a strange green color. 

  
“That...that was kryptonite,” the horrified gunman said, dropping his weapon. “That was supposed to kill Superman or anyone like him.” 

  
With her left hand, Captain Marvel gripped the crown of the man’s head and whispered, “Stronger,” before flicking him unconscious. In truth, she had no idea if she was more powerful than Superman. But she certainly didn’t share this “kryptonite” weakness of his and, from what she’d seen on TV, he wasn’t half the fighter she was. 

  
Plus, criminals thinking there was someone to worry about more than Superman would terrify them. 

  
Captain Marvel dropped the leader outside with the authorities before quickly sweeping through the rest of the building and dealing with everyone else. She felt bad for some of them, since it seemed like they didn’t want to be here, but regardless of why they did it, they’d threatened the lives of others. And that couldn’t be tolerated. 

  
Stretching her arms out, the captain stared down from the sky as the authorities escorted everyone out of the building. Seeing them run into the arms of their loved out who’d been standing outside put a smile on her face. 

  
The smile faded, however, when she saw someone she recognized. He was dressed in a suit and tie, had his hair done differently, and wore glasses, but there was no mistaking who he was. 

  
Clenching her fists, Captain Marvel dove down, picked up the so-called hero she’d looked up to, and carried him back up into the sky. 

  
“Woah!” he called out in an accent she hadn’t heard before. “Usually, it’s Lois getting swept off her feet by heroes. I suppose I should be flattered.” He pointed a finger at her voice. “At least, I’m assuming you’re the one who just saved us all, right? And given you picked me up, I’m guessing you already know I’m Clark Kent of the Daily Planet and you want me to write your story and introduce you to Metropolis? Err, perhaps at ground level?” 

  
Too many words. Yet another reason not to like him. 

  
“Superman.” 

  
“Heh, no, actually, it was Lois who got the first interview with Superman. When she hears about this, she’ll be---” 

  
“You. You’re Superman. And you didn’t...help.” 

  
Clark widened his eyes, put his hand over his heart, and laughed. He’d been accused of being Superman by Lois and Jimmy plenty of times and he knew how to diffuse this situation. 

  
“That’s flattering, but I’m just plain old Clark. Superman and I help each other out sometimes, but that’s all there is to --” 

  
Clark was cut off as Captain Marvel got tired of his words and dropped him. 

  
Captain Marvel crossed her arms and looked up at the clouds while she waited for Superman to fly back up. Between this and Sivana, shutting annoying people up was definitely satisfying. 

  
“That...was rude,” Superman said as he appeared back in front of her, now dressed in his bright red and blue costume. “Care to tell me who you are and how you knew my secret identity?” 

  
“Secret...identity?” 

  
“You know, who you are outside of the costume. Your real self who you can’t tell anyone about for the sake of your loved ones. That’s why I couldn’t stop the gunmen. I was inside the Daily Planet as Clark Kent, and I couldn’t slip away from my friends and show up as Superman without revealing my secret to them.” 

  
Captain Marvel tilted her head to the side. “That’s...stupid.” 

  
“Excuse me?” 

  
“How does...keeping secrets from friends...protect them?” 

  
Superman narrowed his eyes as his super-hearing picked up on the way the captain was speaking. 

  
“I’m sorry, is English not your first language? Would you be more comfortable if we had this conversation another way?” 

  
Captain Marvel was still mad at Superman for being dumb and not helping people, but she wasn’t about to turn down a chance to stop using stupid words. 

  
“Do you sign?” she signed. 

  
“I do,” he signed back. “Now, we’ll have to disagree about how to best keep our loved ones safe, but I do appreciate you stepping in when I wasn’t available. I asked before, but what’s your name?” 

  
She could see what was happening. Although they disagreed, Superman didn’t want to fight. Maybe he just didn’t want to have to take responsibility and explain himself, but he’d been at this much longer than her. Maybe he knew something she didn’t. Regardless, he was doing his best to be...friendly. 

  
“Captain Marvel,” she signed. 

  
“Well, Captain, maybe we can work together sometime. That could help us understand each other better.” 

  
The captain scratched her ear over her mask. “I...like to work alone.” 

  
“A friend of mine in Gotham used to say that. He adopted a kid and made him his sidekick less than a year after we met.” 

  
Superman smiled, and the captain couldn’t help but do so in turn. His friendliness had an irresistible charm to it. 

  
“We’ll see,” Captain Marvel signed. “But, please help people no matter what. You’re a hero. That matters more than a “secret identity”.” 

  
Superman’s smile faded and his face became more serious. “I agree. But I had a feeling things would work out. They always do, and they did.” 

  
Being so positive was dumb. That wasn’t the way the world worked. But she supposed that was the best she was getting from him. She turned around to start flying off, but she stopped when Superman spoke. 

  
“You don’t have a secret identity, do you?” She turned her head to Superman, who now looked both curious and sympathetic. “Are you human? Do you need a place to stay? Even if you like to work alone, no one should be alone.” 

  
She couldn’t do this. Not now. Tawny was one thing. He was like her big, magical guardian. But she didn’t need or want anyone else worrying about her. She wasn’t worth the trouble. Superman was kind and heroic, even if she’d just passed judgment over him for his priorities. She was still just trying her best to be those things when, deep down, she still knew that a mistake had been made. 

  
“Human. Have a place. Not alone. Bye!” 

  
Without giving Superman another chance to speak, Captain Marvel flew away, back to Fawcett City, ready to collapse on her bed. 

  
*  
Over the next few weeks, the girl truly got into the swing of things. As a nameless child, she spent her free time training and watching TV, becoming particularly fond of ballet performances and sci-fi movies. She developed a love for foods of all kinds, as Tawny kept ordering from different restaurants, and the girl kept shoveling down her meals like a garbage disposal. 

  
Meanwhile, as Captain Marvel, she continued to stop ordinary criminals, as well as the occasional natural disaster, but she also built up a rogues gallery of supervillains. However, while they all put up for of a fight than anyone she’d faced before, ultimately, Mr. Mind, Oom the Mighty, Dr. Sivana’s children, and Crocodile Man all fell before her. 

  
Things weren’t all for the best, however. Despite Tawny’s best efforts, he couldn’t get the girl out of the apartment to do anything which didn’t involve saving lives. He wanted her to have friends, he wanted her to have a life, but she just wasn’t interested. Even when he offered to invite other heroes over for dinner, that only caused the girl to have a panic attack and lock herself in the bathroom for an hour. 

  
A less serious problem, but still an important one in Tawny’s eyes, was the girl’s inability to keep her room clean. Not two hours after he cleaned it himself, it would always end up as a disaster area less than an hour later. 

  
Captain Marvel wouldn’t call herself happy with her new life, but she did take pride in the work she was doing. She greatly cared about Tawny and the creature comforts he’d provided her, and she figured she could continue to save as many people as possible until she got what she deserved. 

  
_BOOM!_

  
On a Sunday afternoon, as the girl was watching Alien 3, which she was finding to be nowhere near as good as the first two films, but still enjoyable, a thundering sound echoed throughout all of Fawcett City. 

  
On instinct, the girl called out “SHAZAM!” and transformed. 

  
“Hello, Captain Marvel.” The sound of the unfamiliar man’s voice sent a chill down the captain’s spine. “I am Teth-Adam, also known as Black Adam, and I am currently speaking at a frequency that only you can hear. I understand that you have taken up the role of this city’s protector. If you do not wish to see it reduced to rubble, you will meet me on the roof of its highest building.” 

  
The captain could recall Tawny mentioning “Teth” once or twice, but she didn’t remember the context. When she was eating, she didn’t pay attention to much else. Still, if he was threatening the lives of everyone in Fawcett City, then there was no question that he needed to be stopped, just like every other villain she’d faced. 

  
She opened the window and flew out, arriving nanoseconds later on the roof of WHIZ Radio. Standing across from her was a man dressed in black and gold, with a lightning bolt on his chest just like hers. He was just as muscular as her, and he had pointy, elf-like ears. 

  
“You came with great haste,” he said. “Good. I do not like to be kept waiting.” 

  
Captain Marvel put her hands on her hips and sneered. “What...do you want?” 

  
Black Adam looked up at the sky. “More than you could ever comprehend. But as for right now, I simply seek the power that’s rightfully mine. The power mistakenly given to you.” 

  
The man’s body language was loud, practically screaming his intentions. He wanted power, just as he said, and he planned on using it to commit great acts of evil. Rather than greed or gluttony, this was a man fueled by wrath. 

  
“My power...is used for good. I won’t let you...have it.” 

  
Black Adam lowered his head and directed his eyes back at the captain. “Your cooperation isn’t necessary.” 

  
Before she knew what had happened, the captain had been punched in the stomach, an agonizingly painful strike which sent her flying across the city. 

  
The pain didn’t matter though. What mattered was that he’d hit her at all. Even without her powers, no one was supposed to be able to hit her. 

  
“I have watched you,” Teth said, appearing in the sky in front of her. “You are strong. But you lack experience.” 

  
Captain Marvel grit her teeth. He had no idea what he was talking about. No Idea what she’d been through. No idea what she was capable of. But he was someone fast enough to hit her and strong enough to hurt her. For once, she didn’t need to hold back. 

  
She charged forward at Adam and unleashed a flurry of punches and kicks. She was sure that at least some of her hits would connect, but the more he dodged, the more she could see that something was wrong. 

  
Moving the way he was, she couldn’t read his movements at all. The ability she’d been trained to have since she was an infant hadn’t been upgraded with her body. 

  
_KRAK!_

  
With seemingly little effort put into the strike, Black Adam backhanded Captain Marvel, sending her crashing down through the roof of an office building. 

  
Her head was spinning, but she could still see that the people around her were terrified of what was going on. She knew she couldn’t stay here for even a second to rest. She had to keep the people away from the fight. 

  
Captain Marvel flew back up through the roof to pursue Black Adam, but the instant she escaped the building, her throat was grabbed by a tight hand. 

  
“Can you not see how great the difference between us is?” he asked. “I would wager that whoever is under that mask had never been in a fight prior to gaining these powers.” Captain Marvel’s eyes filled with rage. This bastard was insulting the one thing she had. Had her skills really not translated to this body at all? “This is your last chance to surrender before I get serious.” 

  
Fueled by her anger, Captain Marvel kneed Teth in the crotch, knocking him away from her and causing his eyes to bulge in pain. 

  
“Wizard,” he whispered, clenching his face shut. “I tried to give your champion a chance.”

  
As alert as the captain was, she was helpless as Adam struck her stomach once again. However, this time, he didn’t allow her to go flying. He hit her over and over again, each blow leading naturally into the next as Adam soared around the sky and the captain was knocked around it like a ragdoll. 

  
While Captain Marvel’s body was in incredible pain, several bones feeling like they’d been broken, her pride had been far more damaged. She wasn’t supposed to be able to lose. With the power of Shazam on her side, that fact should have only been solidified. Yet here was Black Adam, who had the same powers as her, but training which couldn’t have compared to her’s, completely destroying her. 

  
“Raaaaaaaaah!” 

  
Captain Marvel roared as she broke out of Black Adam’s combo and tried one more time to take the offensive, but she was met with a hard uppercut to the chin, one which knocked all the remaining energy out of her. She could barely keep her eyes open as she plummeted downward and crashed down into the street, forming a small crater. 

  
She couldn’t move, but she also couldn’t just let Adam take her powers, however he planned on doing that. There was great evil in his heart, and there was no telling what he could do with so much strength. 

  
Floating down to the ground with his arms crossed, Black Adam picked Captain Marvel up above his head and called out, “SHAZAM!” 

  
A lightning bolt descended down from the heavens and hit Captain Marvel, turning her back into the nameless child. Before she could call out the name herself to undo the transformation, Teth covered her mouth. 

  
“Is this some kind of insult from the wizard?” Black Adam sneered, holding the girl out in front of him. “He chose a child to be his champion?!” The girl wanted to spit in his face. She wanted to call him a bitch like Ellen Ripley would. But with her mouth covered, she couldn’t do anything. 

  
Black Adam sighed. “I take no joy in killing children. But I have no choice. The only comfort I can grant you is that while your soul may find peace, the wizard is put you in this position will burn.” 

  
His eyes glowed red as he prepared to finish the girl off with his heat vision. The girl wanted to scream, but she couldn’t. She was getting what she deserved, but now was not the time. Stopping Black Adam was the most important thing, and she’d failed. Her skills hadn’t worked with her powers, and without her powers, her skills were useless against an opponent like this. 

  
He was enraged at Shazam and would no doubt kill him. If he killed him, he would kill Tawny too. Tawny, who’d been nothing but kind and loving and supportive of her, whose efforts to further connect with her she’d shunned at every opportunity. Earth’s other heroes would no doubt try to stop whatever Black Adam had planned, but they wouldn’t be able to succeed where she’d failed. Superman, who’d also tried to be nice to her, would be killed. As would her favorite hero, the great Black Canary. 

  
Tears formed in the girl’s eyes. She couldn’t let this happen. She couldn’t let the only people who’d ever been kind to her, and everyone in the world, die. But there was nothing she could do. She wasn’t pure of heart. She was nothing. 

  
_“Well, someone’s being a real Debby Downer.”_

  
The girl’s eyes widened. She could have sworn she’d just heard Tawny’s voice. 

  
_“I can’t tell you what to think, but let me remind you of a few things. The wisest man in the world deemed you worthy of his power, whereas no one else in the past 3,000 years was. Over the past few weeks, you’ve used that power to save the world over and over and over again! Billions of people still alive because of you. Even with all the power you possess, enough power to kill everyone and take over the world for yourself, you have continued to use your power only for good and you’ve not taken a single life. And, while the competition is only between you and the wizard, I have no trouble calling you my best friend. You are pure of heart. You are Captain Marvel.”_

  
All of those words had come into her head at once. Not a second had passed and Black Adam’s eyes were still glowing red. The girl had no idea if Tawny really had just communicated with her or if she’d just made it all up. Either way...something clicked. 

  
She didn’t know if it would work but it was her only chance. Her mouth was covered, but her hands were free. And so she signed, “SHAZAM!” 

  
As the heat rays left Black Adam’s eyes, a lightning bolt shot down from the sky and transformed the girl back into Captain Marvel. Adam’s attack still hurt, but it didn’t kill her. 

  
“What!” Adam shouted, leaping back away from the captain. “How did you transform?!” 

  
Captain Marvel, newfound energy and power coursing through her, smirked. 

  
“Hero.” 

  
The captain sped forward and struck Adam in the gut, sending him flying across the city. While he was still soaring through the sky, Captain Marvel chased after him, raised her arms above her head, and smashed Teth down in the ground. 

  
“How?! How is this happening?!” 

  
Captain Marvel wasn’t sure herself. She still wasn’t sure how to make use of her skills while in this body, but that didn’t matter. Not with the power she now felt inside her. 

  
Black Adam flew at her, ready to tear her apart, but Captain Marvel held him back with her super-breath, slowly freezing him, before moving in to attack herself, kicking him upside the head. 

  
The captain chased after him once again, this time grabbing him by the legs, swinging him around, and tossing him far, far, away from her city. With her super-vision, it was no trouble at all following where he was going. 

  
Flying into the mountain range where Black Adam had crashed, Captain Marvel didn’t give him a chance to get up, plumbing him with a rapid barrage of punches. 

  
Teth desperately tried one more time to gain the upper hand with his own super breath, but the captain simply avoided it by picking him up over her head. 

  
“I...am Teth Adam. I shall not be bested by a child!” 

  
“You...just were. SHAZAM!” 

  
One more lightning bolt descended down from the sky, this time striking Black Adam, reverting him to his powerless state. And before he could invoke the wizard’s name himself, Captain Marvel used the move she’d become the most familiar with. 

  
_Flick!_

  
As she set down Black Adam’s unconscious body on the ground, the captain wasn’t sure what she was feeling. Strong, certainly. And the last part of the fight had been a joy for her. But there was something else she couldn’t quite explain. Something which Tawny’s words had caused. She felt...whole. 

  
*  
Captain Marvel delivered Teth to the wizard, knowing the authorities wouldn’t be able to contain him, and Shazam expressed immense gratitude. 

  
“I knew that this day would come eventually,” he’d said. “And I couldn’t be more proud.” 

  
Once he was safely secured, she and Tawny left, and decided to go out to have some ramen. 

  
“I can’t believe you’re willing to eat out,” Tawny signed. “Did you hit your head while you were fighting Teth?” 

  
“I got hit...a lot,” the girl signed back. “But...I...no.” 

  
Even speaking through signs, she still couldn’t communicate what she was thinking properly. Action was needed. And so she wrapped her arms tightly around Tawny. 

  
Without hesitation, Tawny hugged her back, his tiger strength making him an amazing hugger. 

  
She wanted to ask if he’d spoken to her during her fight or not. But she already knew the answer. She hadn’t been transformed when he’d “spoken” to her. She wouldn’t have been able to understand him. It didn’t matter though. She knew that he believed every word she’d heard. 

  
Her father had forced her to make a terrible mistake. A mistake she could never take back. But she wasn’t that mistake. 

  
She was more. 


End file.
